COMMUNICATION TERMINAL, TERMINAL SWITCHING SYSTEM, AND TERMINAL SWITCHING METHOD

• US 20090055537A1
• Filed: 01/23/2006
• Published: 02/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Xu, Mingqiang, Takei, Kentaro, Komiya, Daisaku, Takeshita, Sachiko, Amishima, Maki
• Granted Patent: US 8,667,142 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2094 Proximity
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/58 Arrangements for transferring received calls from one subscriber to another; Arrangements affording interim conversations between either the calling or the called party and a third party substation line holding circuits H04M1/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

A transfer-source terminal, a communication-destination terminal, and a nearby terminal existing in the neighborhood of transfer-source terminal are provided. The nearby terminal collects connectivity information for monitoring connectivity after terminal switching by performing a communication process with the communication-destination terminal, and transmits the connectivity information collected to the transfer-source terminal. The transfer-source terminal receives connectivity information from the nearby terminal by a connectivity information receiving unit, determines a transfer-destination terminal from among the nearby terminals according to connectivity information by a transfer-destination terminal determinating unit, and transfers a communication session with a communication-destination terminal to the transfer-destination terminal determined, by a session transferring unit.

Claims

1. A communication terminal that transfers an application-level communication session being performed with a communication-destination terminal as a communication destination through a network, to a transfer-destination terminal determined from among at least one nearby terminal, comprising:

a connectivity information receiving unit that acquires from the at least one nearby terminal, connectivity information collected by performing a communication process between the at least one nearby terminal and the communication-destination terminal, or between the at least one nearby terminal and a server that performs procedures of login, authentication, and billing for a network user;

a transfer-destination terminal determinating unit that determines the transfer-destination terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the connectivity information; and

a session transferring unit that transfers the communication session with the communication-destination terminal to the transfer-destination terminal determined by the transfer-destination terminal determinating unit.

3. The communication terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a terminal information receiving unit that acquires terminal information that is unique information related to the at least one nearby terminal, from the at least one nearby terminal; and

a transfer-destination candidate terminal determinating unit that determines a transfer-destination candidate terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the terminal information, wherein

the connectivity information receiving unit acquires the connectivity information only from the transfer-destination candidate terminal, and wherein

the transfer-destination terminal determinating unit determines the transfer-destination terminal from among the transfer-destination candidate terminal according to the connectivity information.

5. The communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the connectivity information is at least any one of accessibility of a network between the at least one nearby terminal and the communication-destination terminal, transmission capacity of the network, and interconnectivity of a communication application.

7. The communication terminal of claim 5, wherein the connectivity information receiving unit further acquires connectivity information that is authentication possibility for the at least one nearby terminal by a server of the network.

2. A communication terminal to which an application-level communication session established between a transfer-source terminal as an other communication terminal and a communication-destination terminal as a communication destination of the transfer-source terminal is transferred from the transfer-source terminal through a network, comprising:

a connectivity information collecting unit that collects connectivity information by performing a communication process with the communication-destination terminal or a server that performs procedures of login, authentication, and billing for a network user; and

a connectivity information transmitting unit that transmits the connectivity information to the transfer-source terminal.

4. The communication terminal of claim 2, further comprising a terminal information transmitting unit that transmits terminal information that is unique information related to the communication terminal, to the transfer-source terminal.

6. The communication terminal of claim 2, wherein the connectivity information is at least any one of accessibility of a network between the communication terminal and the communication-destination terminal, transmission capacity of the network, and interconnectivity of a communication application.

8. The communication terminal of claim 6, wherein the connectivity information collecting unit further collects connectivity information that is authentication possibility for the communication terminal by a server of the network.

9. A terminal switching system that transfers an application-level communication session established between a communication-destination terminal as a communication destination and a transfer-source terminal as a communication source, from the transfer-source terminal to a transfer-destination terminal that is a nearby terminal through a network, wherein

the at least one nearby terminal includes:

a connectivity information collecting unit that collects connectivity information by performing a communication process with the communication-destination terminal; and

a connectivity information transmitting unit that transmits the connectivity information to the transfer-source terminal, and wherein

the transfer-source terminal includes;

a connectivity information receiving unit that receives the connectivity information from the at least one nearby terminal;

a transfer-destination terminal determinating unit that determines the transfer-destination terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the connectivity information; and

a session transferring unit that transfers the communication session with the communication-destination terminal, to the transfer-destination terminal determined by the transfer-destination terminal determinating unit.

10. The terminal switching system of claim 9, wherein

the at least one nearby terminal further includes:

a terminal information transmitting unit that transmits terminal information related to the at least one nearby terminal, to the transfer-source terminal, wherein

the transfer-source terminal further includes;

a terminal information receiving unit that receives the terminal information from the at least one nearby terminal; and

a transfer-destination candidate terminal determinating unit that determines a transfer-destination candidate terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the terminal information, and wherein

the connectivity information receiving unit of the transfer-source terminal acquires the connectivity information only from the transfer-destination candidate terminal, and the transfer-destination terminal determinating unit determines the transfer-destination terminal from among the transfer-destination candidate terminal according to the connectivity information.

11. The terminal switching system of claim 9, wherein the connectivity information is at least any one of accessibility of a network between the at least one nearby terminal and the communication-destination terminal, transmission capacity of the network, and interconnectivity of a communication application.

12. The terminal switching system of claim 11, wherein the connectivity information collecting unit of the at least one nearby terminal further collects connectivity information that is authentication possibility for the at least one nearby terminal by a server of the network.

13. A terminal switching method in which an application-level communication session established between a communication-destination terminal as a communication destination and a transfer-source terminal as a communication source through a network is transferred from the transfer-source terminal to a transfer-destination terminal that is a nearby terminal, comprising:

a step in which the at least one nearby terminal collects connectivity information by performing a communication process with a communication-destination terminal;

a step in which the at least one nearby terminal transmits the connectivity information to the transfer-source terminal;

a step in which the transfer-source terminal receives the connectivity information from the at least one nearby terminal;

a step in which the transfer-source terminal determines a transfer-destination terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the connectivity information; and

a step in which the transfer-source terminal transfers the communication session with the communication-destination terminal to the transfer-destination terminal.

14. The terminal switching method of claim 13, further comprising:

a step in which the at least one nearby terminal transmits terminal information that is unique information related to the at least one nearby terminal, to the transfer-source terminal;

a step in which the transfer-source terminal receives the terminal information from the at least one nearby terminal;

a step in which the transfer-source terminal determines a transfer-destination candidate terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal according to the terminal information;

a step in which the transfer-source terminal requests connectivity information that is information for monitoring connectivity after terminal switching, from the transfer-destination candidate terminal;

a step in which the transfer-destination candidate terminal collects the connectivity information by performing a communication process with the communication-destination terminal;

a step in which the transfer-destination candidate terminal transmits the connectivity information to the transfer-source terminal, wherein the transfer-source terminal receives the connectivity information only from the transfer-destination candidate terminal from among the at least one nearby terminal, in the step for receiving the connectivity information, and determines a transfer-destination terminal from among the transfer-destination candidate terminal according to the connectivity information, in the step for determining the transfer-destination terminal.

15. The terminal switching method of claim 13, wherein the connectivity information is at least any one of accessibility of a network between the at least one nearby terminal and the communication-destination terminal, transmission capacity of the network, and interconnectivity of a communication application.

16. The terminal switching method of claim 15, wherein the at least one nearby terminal further collects connectivity information that is authentication possibility for the at least one nearby terminal by a server of the network in the step for collecting the connectivity information.